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Darcy Piceu, ultra runner hoka

Jan 30

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Darcy Piceu, ultra runner hoka

Darcy Piceu to run 2021 Ultra Tour Monte Rosa!

Lizzy Hawker

We welcome Darcy Piceu to the 2021 Ultra Tour Monte Rosa to compete with Jasmin Paris, Roman Evarts, Tom Owens, Matthieu Girard and others!

Darcy has been running ultramarathons for 20 years and has completed over 103 ultra races. Some of her notable accomplishments include 3 time Hardrock 100 winner, 3 time Wasatch Front 100 winner, with additional first places finishes at Bighorn 100, Hurt 100, Angeles Crest 100, Rhonda Del Cims 170k, Javelina 100, Bigfoot 120, The Bear 100 and Cascade Crest 100. Darcy also holds the women’s supported Fastest Known Time on the 211 mile John Muir Trail. When she’s not running, Darcy loves to ski. She works as a Psychotherapist in Boulder, Colorado working with youth in the schools and has a private practice. Above all else, Darcy is a Mom to one incredible 12 year old daughter, Sophia.

Darcy Piceu

We asked her a few questions about why she’d like to try UTMR in 2021!

Q. Did someone recommend the race to you? If so, what did they say about it that made you look more into UTMR and what it was?

I’ve known about this 170 km ultra trail race for years and have wanted to run this course for quite some time.  The timing hasn’t worked for me in years past, but I’m over the moon to run the UTMR course this year! I imagine Lizzy’s style of running and sense of adventure is similar to my own and cannot wait to see what she has created with this race!

Q. What aspect of the race (or parts of the course) are you looking forward to?

The mountain scenery!  Just seeing new trails and the surrounding mountains is what I am looking forward to the most,  AND sharing the trails with others in the running community.

Q. Will you be training this year with UTMR specifically in mind or just keeping in form through racing?

I will be training early and often this year leading up to other mountain courses (including Hardrock 100).  I am hopeful that this training will be sufficient enough for UTMR as well.

Q. Does Pizza work for you at checkpoints? What do you rely on to keep you going?

Pizza is great!  I also love potato chips and Coke.  

Q. Do you have any secret tips to share with other runners that you’ve learned over the years, which increase your chance of finishing?

Have patience with yourself and know that you will have low points, but they are temporary. Eat and drink early and often!

Q. Do you talk to yourself a lot when the going gets tough? What do you find helps keep you going when it’s feeling very tough?

YES!  I talk to myself and give myself little pep talks along the way.  Sometimes music can also help with boosting mood.  

Good luck with your training and races this year Darcy and see you in September!

Endurance runner Darcy Piceu
Endurance runner Darcy Piceu will run the UTMR 100 mile course in September 2021

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Jan 26

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Jasmin Paris climbing at Tromso Sky Race

Jasmin Paris will compete in the 170 km Ultra Tour for 2021

Lizzy Hawker

We’re very happy to welcome Jasmin Paris as one of the elite women running the 170 km Ultra Tour in 2021!

Jasmin is British and is extremely well known in Great Britain as a fell runner, and became known on the international stage as a sky runner after her victory in the 2016 Skyrunner World Series (Sky Extreme) and bronze medal at the 2016 Skyrunning World Championships (Sky Ultra). She received significant media attention for her overall win in the 268 mile / 430 km Spine Race in 2019.

We wanted to introduce Jasmin to UTMR followers and ask her if she would share some advice from her wealth of experience with other UTMR runners this year.

Jasmin Paris running UTMB 2016
In her first attempt at a 100+ mile distance race, Jasmin finished 6th woman at the 2016 Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB). © www.inov-8.com / James Mackeddie

I’m really excited about racing the UTMR. I’ve heard so many good things about it, and it sounds exactly like the kind of race, or even just run, I enjoy most: technical, slightly off the beaten track and allowing you to get away from it all in the big mountains.

Jasmin Paris

Jasmin, for our international runners who might not know of your achievements, please introduce yourself!

I’m an ultra distance hill and trail runner based in Scotland, where I live with my husband, our two young children, and border collie dog. When I’m not working as a vet, or caring for the little ones, I love being out in the mountains. I will be returning to racing this year following the birth of my youngest child in 2020 and I’m really excited about racing the UTMR. I’ve heard so many good things about it, and it sounds exactly like the kind of race, or even just run, I enjoy most: technical, slightly off the beaten track and allowing you to get away from it all in the big mountains. I’ll be bringing my family with me and I know they will enjoy joining in with the friendly atmosphere of the race and cheering everyone along!

Q. Do you have any secret tips to share with other runners that you’ve learned over the years, which increase your chance of finishing?

I think that a huge part of running an ultra race is in the mind, it’s about having the self belief and the determination to keep going when things get hard. I’ve found through experience that I typically have at least one bad patch on any long race, but now that I know to expect it, I’m better equipped mentally to deal with it. I’ve learnt that as long as I keep eating, and keep looking after myself, things will start to feel easier again. I try to keep moving as much as I can, even if it’s at a slow pace, but remember that time spent checking navigation, putting on clothes before I get cold, or getting more food from my pack is always a good investment in the long run.

Jasmin Paris climbing at Tromso Sky Race
Jasmin Paris at the Tromso Sky Race ©Kilian Jornet

Q. Do you talk to yourself a lot when the going gets tough? What do you find helps keep you going when it’s feeling very tough?

Sometimes I talk to myself, and sometimes I sing – in fact I’ve found that singing out loud is a great way to keep oneself awake. When things get very tough, I tend to think of my family, and how we’ll spend our time together again once the race is over. I try to focus on something positive, and hold that image, or else let my mind drift and not think of anything at all – just fall into a sort of meditative state. 

Jasmin, we look forward to welcoming you and your family to Grächen in September! Best of luck!


Note: the 170 km Ultra Tour is filling up fast. Pre-register now to reserve your place. There are still plenty of places available for the 100 km Ultra 3 Passes trail race from Gressoney in Italy, to Grächen, Switzerland.

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Oct 28

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Julien Gilleron

Wider Mag journalist wins Grächen Berglauf

UTMR Admin

Wider Magazine: posts and articles following UTMR throughout 2021. Final publication about Grächen Berglauf.

Julien Gilleron
Julien Gilleron accepting a khatta from Lizzy Hawker
Wider mag UTMR grachen berglauf


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Oct 01

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UTMR in Trails Endurance Magazine

UTMR Admin

Thanks to photographer Hervé Le Gac and Trails Endurance for taking the time and effort to cover Ultra Tour Monte Rosa 2019 and brave the unfortunate weather conditions we faced.

We hope you will come back for more of the sunny days we more often expect!

Click to enlarge!

Click to enlarge!

Click to enlarge!

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Jan 26

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UTMR hardrock qualifier

UTMR will be a qualifying race for the 2021 Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run

Lizzy Hawker

We had some good news from the board of “Hardrock”!  Finishers of our 170km race in 2020 will qualify for the 2021 Hardrock lottery. For anyone who hasn’t heard of Hardrock it is a 100 mile ultramarathon in the Southern Colorado’s San Juan Range, USA.

Here is what one 5-time finisher of Hardrock, Jason Poole, has to say about it!” As a 5-time finisher of the Hardrock Hundred Endurance Run and also a finisher of the Ultra Tour Monte Rosa (UTMR), I can honestly say that the UTMR is one of the very best Hardrock qualifiers available in all of Europe.  Although the UTMR occurs at an overall lower altitude than Hardrock, it does boast more elevation gain.  With a wide variety of trail types and surfaces, the UTMR serves up a unique and challenging circumnavigation of the second highest mountain in the Alps and western Europe.  The UTMR will more than adequately prepare you for the high-alpine terrain of the Hardrock and the San Juan Mountains in Colorado.  I highly recommend the UTMR, not only as a qualifier for the Hardrock, but as a truly extraordinary running adventure with spectacular scenery, lung-burning climbs and some of the finest trails in the Alps.”

For more information about Hardrock you can check their website here: https://www.hardrock100.com/

The San Juan mountains of Colorado, USA.

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Nov 15

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Slovak elite, Peter Brestovansky, for the 2019 170km UTMR

Lizzy Hawker

We are happy to welcome an elite runner, Peter Brestovansky, from the Slovak Ultra Trail Team to the 170km UTMR! Here’s what he has to say …..

“In addition to climbing, ski alpinism and mountain biking, I also enjoy running. The long distances running. Ultra run. It came completely out of blue. At the time I was occupied with my work and family so much, there was no time for more time consuming activities such as climbing or cycling. So I started running. And I kept adding length of the distances. I started to explore my limits. First I thought my personal limit was to complete a marathon. Then I managed to run most of the Slovak ultra trail racing competitions containing of one hundred and more kilometres as well as 24 hour running events. I still did not reach the limits of my body and soul. So I decided to run a solo of 360 km from High Tatras to the Danube River. The limits were not reached yet… I was looking for a new dimension. 

I found it in enrolling charity running events and runs carrying a strong moral message. One of them is „Ultralanovka“ for Plamienok Charity and Štefánik Trail, where collected funds are used for palliative care of small children.

Before and after the Stefanik trail!

The „On the Edge“ Project, where my team and I run from Auschwitz in Poland to Žilina in Slovakia (170 km), to revive the true story of two concentration camp prisoners Vrba and Wetzler, who provided the first ever report following their concentration camp escape  describing events of what was actually happening there. The result of the project was a movie called „On the Edge“, that won a few prizes at various film festivals. Me and my co-runners  have been now showing this film, accompanied with additional explanations and discussions, to children at schools thought the whole Slovakia. The last of my big challenges were races in Andorra ELS 2900 and PTL around Mont Blanc. Both races carrying a strong message, taking place in the mountains that I love and where I can become a part of them for a while. My addiction started there. I like the challenges, especially the harder ones. This doesn’t apply just to the run, but also to climbing and ski alpinism. In all these events not only physical but also mental preparedness is needed. I have found out that, apart from mileage, there is something else that makes these occasions so important. It’s about people around you – your family, your team and your mind. Mental preparation. The way you deal with it, how you believe in your abilities and how you can be yourself. Together with my friends I also organise running camps, where we teach other runners how to lead this way of life.”

We wish you the best of luck Peter, see you in September!

Raining in the Tatras!

 

 

 

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